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Declining native species could be planted in urban green spaces. Researchers now describe how to use this great potential for species protection. They recommend practical conservation gardening methods in a bid to restructure the horticultural industry and reverse plant species declines. View the full article

Tropical trees in Australia's rainforests have been dying at double the previous rate since the 1980s, seemingly because of climate impacts, according to the findings of a long-term international study. This research has found the death rates of tropical trees have doubled in the last 35 years, as global warming increases the drying power of the atmosphere. View the full article

Once humans discovered how to tame fire, they began using it for heat, cooking, to scare away animals and to alter their environs, especially burning areas to plant and to restore grazing land. In Madagascar, scientists and conservationists have long believed that fire is a leading cause of high landscape degradation, but an international team of researchers have found that medium to large fires on the island are similar to those on other tropical locations. View the full article

New research provides the first long-term study of methods to control the spread of wildfire in the sagebrush steppe ecosystem that dominates parts of the western United States. View the full article

Researchers have discovered and described two new species of Amazonian fish -- one with striking red-orange fins and the other so small it is technically considered a miniature fish species. Both species inhabit waters located at the bleeding edge of human encroachment into the Amazon rainforest roughly 25 miles north of the Brazilian city of Apuí. The study's authors said that ongoing deforestation in the region places these roughly inch-long fish, part of a group known colloquially as the South American darters, in imminent danger of extinction. View the full article

Terrestrial laser scanning data show that trees move their branches in a diurnal pattern, settling down for the night -- as if falling asleep. Changes in the water status of leaves and branches causes branches to move downward at night, up to 20 cm depending on the tree species. View the full article

All of that carbon in trees and forests worldwide could be thrown back into the atmosphere if the trees burn up in a forest fire. Trees also stop scrubbing carbon dioxide from the air if they die due to drought or insect damage. The likelihood of those threats impacting forests is increasing nationwide, making relying on forests to soak up carbon emissions a much riskier prospect. View the full article

In Finland, climate change is causing the pine pest Panolis flammea, or pine beauty moth, to shift its range northward 50 years ahead of predictions. Changes in both the distribution and size of the pine beauty moth population are linked to higher temperatures, a new study shows. View the full article

Native species in California's estuaries are expected to experience greater declines as invasive species interact with climate change, according to a new study. View the full article

With about one-third of the world's corals currently under threat of extinction due to climate change, researchers have made the encouraging discovery of a 'lost' species of coral that had been hidden for more than 50 years. View the full article

New ancient DNA analysis has shed light on how the black rat, blamed for spreading Black Death, dispersed across Europe -- revealing that the rodent colonized the continent on two occasions in the Roman and Medieval periods. By analyzing DNA from ancient black rat remains found at archaeological sites spanning the 1st to the 17th centuries in Europe and North Africa, researchers have pieced together a new understanding of how rat populations dispersed following the ebbs and flows of human trade, urbanism, and empires. View the full article

Climate change is already affecting plants and animals worldwide and is a growing threat to biodiversity, adding a new layer to the existing challenges of habitat loss, invasive species, pollution, and overexploitation. A new study surveyed the recommendations of scientists for managing biodiversity in the face of climate change, providing a summary of practical guidance and identifying areas in need of further research. View the full article

A new study of leaf fossils conducted in the nation of Brunei on the island of Borneo has revealed that the current dominant tree group, the dipterocarps, has dominated the rainforests for at least four million years. The findings suggest that the current landscape is similar to what was present during the Pliocene Epoch, 5.3 to 2.6 million years ago, and may provide additional justification for conservation of these forests that support many critically endangered species. View the full article

Bird species that live in wooded areas are under stress from human-caused changes to forest composition, according to new research that quantifies the effects of forest 'degradation' on bird habitat. View the full article

Wildlife watchers generally welcome species that have arrived in the UK due to climate change, new research suggests. View the full article

The South American coati is a medium-sized mammal with a wide distribution in South America. Despite this, it is endangered in southern Brazil, primarily because of the loss of forest habitats. Researchers recorded an individual at the Canoas Airbase, one of the last remaining green spaces in a densely urbanized area of a large city in southern Brazil. View the full article

New research shows fungi and bacteria able to survive redwood tanoak forest megafires are microbial 'cousins' that often increase in abundance after feeling the flames. View the full article

A new study of a southwestern Washington floodplain finds that most native species adapt well to the invaders by shifting their food sources and feeding strategies. View the full article

Researchers have developed global forecasts that can provide up to a year's notice of marine heatwaves, sudden and pronounced increases in ocean temperatures that can dramatically affect ocean ecosystems. View the full article

Before being accidentally introduced to the New World by the 16th century slave trade, the yellow fever mosquito was a species native only to Africa. Highly adaptable, it has since become an invasive species in North America, but researchers at may have found a way to squash the pesky population in its juvenile stages. View the full article

Taylor Swift, an American singer known for her musical talents, has earned a new accolade. She now has a new species of millipede named after her. The new species of twisted-claw millipede was discovered in the mountains of Tennessee. Scientists described a total of 17 new species from the Appalachian Mountains. View the full article

Researchers have developed the maps at a fine-enough resolution to help conservation managers focus their efforts where they are most likely to help birds -- in individual counties or forests, rather than across whole states or regions. View the full article

Tracing the regional origin of everything from milk to invasive bugs is now possible thanks to a new project. A strontium isotope map means biological material can be pinpointed to distinct geographical regions in Aotearoa. View the full article

Entomologists have now shown that the more plant species there are in a meadow, the more bee species are needed for pollination. They found that the less common bees often visited specific plants others didn't, shedding new light on the role of rare species in ecosystems -- critical to conservation efforts because rare species are most at risk of extinction from habitat loss, pollution, climate change and other factors. View the full article

The concept of ecosystem services allows researchers to quantify the benefits that nature contributes to people into monetary units. A new study suggests that trees provide greater economic value when used to regulate climate and air quality than the value they produce as wood products, food crops, and Christmas trees. View the full article